When you are travelling, the one thing that surely goes amiss is being out of touch with your loved ones. This is especially true during overseas travel. No wonder, people apply for international roaming packages on their domestic sim cards to ensure they have connectivity at hand, as soon as they land. Unfortunately, they are often dismayed by the huge amount of bills received at the end of the month! Adding to a traveller's woe is the infinite search for Wifi networks all along. Wherever you go, do you first hunt for an open Wifi network so that you can upload your favorite pictures to your heart's content?
Now, there is one place in the Middle East which totally relates to all your problems. The Dubai International Airport has come up with a unique attraction. It will now hand over a welcome pack to every traveller arriving there which contains a local Sim! You can forget your domestic Sim for a while and use this new sim card on your mobile for fast and easy connectivity.
The card comes with a host of friendly features. You get a pre-loaded talktime of 3 minutes so that you can make a quick call or two to inform of your safe landing. More importantly, it also contains 20 MB of data pre-loaded. This means that you can immediately get online and check important mails, messages as well post a few travel pictures on Instagram right from the airport. Sounds great!
The basic validity extends up to 30 days. If you are staying for a few days and need to recharge it, there are three recharge packages available.
3-day pack: This bundle gives you 10 flexible minutes of talk time plus 150 MB of data for internet usage. It would cost you Dhs25.
1-week pack: Pick up this pack if you are spending almost a week in Dubai. It gives you 500 MB of data along with 20 minutes of talktime and all you have to pay is Dhs55.
2-week pack: Travellers who plan to stay in Dubai for two weeks can opt for this pack. Valid for 14 days, the pack costs Dhs110 and includes 40 minutes of flexible talk time plus 2 GB of data.
You only have to be above 18 years of age to be eligible. Kind of visa you carry does not matter as it is available for travellers with visit visa, visa on arrival or even those with transit visa. Head straight for passport control officials in Dubai airport to get your Sim card.
As a part of Dubai's Smart Government’s Happiness Project, all those who are travelling from Guld Cooperation Council countries are also included. So, travellers from Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Bahrain who don't need to possess a visa for entry into the United Arab Emirates, will also be a part of the offer. Du, the local telecommunication service company, has partnered with the Government to make this service available.
At a press conference in emirate, Head of Dubai’s General Directorate of Residency and Foreign Affairs, Major General Mohammad Al Marri announced about this news. “The project aims to contribute to the achievement of the Dubai happiness agenda which is being implemented by Dubai Smart, and to make Dubai visitors’ experience a smooth and enjoyable visit”, were his words. He concluded by further saying,” We are committed to strengthening our efforts in this area by enabling visitors to enjoy excellent communication services.”
The smart initiative is being offered at all the terminals at DXB airport. As far as linking the Sim cards is concerned, personal data by travel documents is collected by immigration officers and used for issuing personalised pre-loaded Sim cards.
